


Fatherhood

by Crowlows19



Category: Batman - All Media Types, Justice League - All Media Types
Genre: Batfamily, Batfamily Feels, Bruce Wayne is a Good Parent
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-31
Updated: 2019-07-31
Packaged: 2020-07-27 16:31:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 856
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20049112
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Crowlows19/pseuds/Crowlows19
Summary: Clark reflects on Bruce Wayne as a parent and the journey of fatherhood.





	Fatherhood

Bruce had been a father for over a decade before Clark had come to terms with the fact. It wasn’t that it had been incredibly gradual or that he had never witnessed Bruce be fatherly, it was simply that it had never fully clicked. 

When Dick had been a child, it had been the start of something new. None of them had ever really had a child. He was the first on the scene and the first to make it okay. Whether he had ever wanted it or not, Dick Grayson was a leader, the pivotal beginning to a whole new generation that may not have been had he never flown through Gotham as a Robin. For many, including Clark, Dick had been a poster child, but he was never really a child in their eyes. 

When Jason had come around, hardly anyone had even met him. His tenure was brief, mostly confined to Gotham, and marred by violence. His death had been a stark reminder that while they had all put the title of Robin on a pedestal, that title was still held by a child. A very human child, who could be broken. 

Dealing with the Batman after the fact had been nearly impossible and the grieving process had really only gotten any traction once it had become clear that Jason was actually alive. There was a somewhat nasty saying whispered about in the Justice League that Batman had simply stubborned that second son back into being. 

Clark had witnessed small moments between Bruce and both of these boys that had always surprised him into remembering that Bruce was now a father. Whether it was finding out that Bruce had put trackers in their armor or when he inevitably witnessed Bruce carrying a sleeping kid to bed, these small moments were few and far in between. 

After all, Bruce wasn’t one to talk about himself and he was even less likely to talk about the boys, such was his nature to keep them out of the public eye and protected. Cat Grant had once asked him if there was some hidden scandal there. Unlike other socialites and celebrities, Bruce’s kids were never on the red carpets even if they were at the event. They were always escorted into the building away from prying eyes. 

Clark knew it was because Bruce had promised them a normal life. The world didn’t know what to think. 

All that protectiveness over privacy meant that Clark was really one of the few outside of the family to see the dynamic truly at work. On those rare occasions when he spent a night or two in the manor for some reason or another, he always enjoyed sitting back and watching. 

He had watched the easy closeness between Bruce and Dick and he had watched the difficult but equally rewarding challenge that had been Jason. Those two boys had been so different that it had been a genuine pleasure to watch Bruce parent in two different styles. So, by the time that third boy had come along, Clark was intensely curious as to how Bruce would handle this one. 

What he hadn’t expected was to meet another, smaller Bruce. 

“What are you talking about?” Bruce had sneered at him when Clark had made an off hand remark about how similar he and Tim actually were. “We’re not that similar.”

“You’re exactly the same,” Clark countered. “How can you not see that?”

“See what?” Bruce snapped. Clark had stared at him disbelief wondering if Bruce was messing with him or was simply that much in denial. 

“Well, for starters, there’s the obsessive attitude, the planning, the general demeanor. You name it, you and the kid both have it! Dick told me that the reason he’s Robin is because he just walked up to you and demanded it. And that he figured out your identity when he was six years old. Tell me that doesn’t sound like you?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Bruce had denied. Over the years, the relationship between Bruce and Tim had seemed the most professional, sometimes appearing to be so cold that Superboy had once asked him if Batman even liked Robin. 

But Clark knew Bruce better than anybody, and he was certain that what he was actually watching was a recreation of how Bruce had been raised. There was trust, training, and secrets. Tim seemed to know more about Bruce than even Dick did sometimes. 

Despite everything he’d witnessed over the years, Clark knew that Bruce Wayne had truly descended into fatherhood when he saw Tim Drake reach out to him for comfort in his darkest hour. Because if anyone could get that controlled and stoic child to give up control and let someone else deal with the issue at hand, it was a man built to father difficult but incredible children. 

When Clark ran into his first issues as a father, it was Bruce that he called for advice. And while some may have considered Damian an unfit partner for Superman’s son, Clark hadn’t. Because that was Bruce’s child and Bruce had it handled.


End file.
